by Emma Davies
I hadn’t really thought.
Drew shrugs. ‘Thea?’
‘I don’t know, maybe carpet will be nicer.’
‘Warmer certainly,’ answers Derek. ‘If it were me,’ he begins again. ‘I would have your bench down the middle, facing the garden like you said. Run the cables under the floor and have a bank of sockets at either end of the bench. A small radiator at either end of the room, and your cupboards and whatnot along there. It will add to the price but I’d think about a motorised blind system, too, for the sunnier days – you’ll struggle with the light in here otherwise.’
He looks up, frowning for a moment. ‘Folks don’t always realise, but you can have too much light in a place, especially if you’re working using screens and such like. Plus, you’ll boil in here otherwise. Have a run of them, across the ceiling and down each window in separate strips. That way you can have each strip set differently according to how you like it and, as the light moves, you move the blinds.’
I hadn’t even thought of that, but Derek is obviously convinced.
‘Sounds good,’ says Drew. ‘We’re going to be in here a lot, we need it to be comfortable.’
‘Right then.’ Derek’s pencil stills. ‘Leave it with me, I’ll get a few quotes to you by Tuesday afternoon if that suits. I know you want things underway as soon as possible.’
Drew is working incredibly hard to keep from laughing. Not because it’s funny but because he’s as amazed as I am. Nothing was ever this easy in London.
‘That would be absolutely perfect. We do need to get everything sorted as quickly as we can… Buying this place all happened a bit out of the blue and we haven’t had much time to think, or plan.’
Derek nods and replaces the pencil in his pocket. ‘Well, it’s still a lovely house, I’m sure you’ll be very happy here.’
I grin at Drew. ‘I always was…’ I reply.
Derek gives me a quizzical look.
‘I grew up here,’ I say. ‘So did Drew actually. We lived next door to one another. He was at Rose Cottage… just down the lane.’
He looks us up and down. ‘Well, I’ll be damned. Drew Gordon…!’ He taps his finger against his notepad. ‘And Thea! – Bradley, you would have been back then, wouldn’t you? Blimey, everyone knew your folks. I even did a bit of work for them when I first came to the village. Hadn’t long started my own business and grateful for anything.’ He narrows his eyes. ‘It was only a couple of extra sockets in the kitchen… and an extension into the pantry for your mum’s chest freezer… but then of course your dad got me the job doing the renovations up at the village hall. It properly put me on the map, I can tell you. So it wasn’t just the village that was grateful for everything your dad did for them, but me as well. The work just flooded in after that and I’ve never looked back. In fact, I’m probably still in business thanks to him. How’s that for a story?’
‘I’m impressed,’ replies Drew.
‘Aye, those were good times before…’ Derek breaks off to peer at me, eyes weighing something up. ‘And so you two got married, had kiddies of your own and now you’ve come back here…’ But whatever he was going to add remains unsaid. ‘Right, well the very best of luck with everything, and, like I said, give me a day or two and I’ll let you know how I’m fixed.’
Two minutes later he’s gone, and we’re left staring at each other, speechless.
‘Well, how lovely was that? Meeting someone who knew our parents on the day we move in. What are the chances…?’
Drew gives me a wayward glance. ‘All I’m really concerned about is whether he does a good job and so I’m happy to find out he’s been in business a long time. He must be well respected.’
It isn’t what Drew wants to say at all but it’s just like him not to draw attention to anything negative.
‘It was an odd comment he made about the house though, don’t you think? About not believing any stories we hear.’
‘Not really. I imagine we’ve probably picked up a ghost or two through the years. It’s a big old house, I guess it’s almost mandatory.’ He grins suddenly. ‘My money’s on a pale grey lady…’
I slap his arm playfully. ‘Stop it,’ I say, wriggling my shoulders as a sudden shiver ripples through me. ‘You heard what Derek said, he thinks the house has a lovely feel to it. Anyway, we already know that.’
‘Of course we do,’ he replies, plonking a kiss on my nose. ‘I’m just teasing.’
‘Plus, Derek is going to get our studio sorted out for us in record time. If it were me… I’d say we just struck lucky…’
Drew is just about to reply when a piercing scream echoes down the hallway.
Three
Drew gets there first, clearly imagining, as I am, a scene of devastation or at the very least bloodshed.
Instead, facing each other across the hallway are Chloe and the same Dalmatian I’d seen earlier, come back for a repeat inspection. Chloe is three steps from the bottom of the stairs and the dog is a foot from the front doorway, its whole body waggling in nervous excitement, not in the least bit put off by Chloe’s dramatics. Lauren, I notice, is peering shyly through the banister from the galleried landing above.
Seconds later, a harassed-looking woman appears and makes a lunge for the errant canine.
‘I’m so sorry,’ she blurts out. ‘I don’t know what it is about this house, but he’s been trying to get in here for days.’ And then she stops dead. ‘Oh… You must be the new people.’ She has a hand on the dog’s collar and straightens up. ‘I’m the incredibly embarrassed woman from next door… Erm… Anna… Grainger.’ She pauses to smile up at Chloe who is now staring, transfixed. ‘And this, very friendly, but rather naughty dog, is Fergus. I’m sorry if he scared you, I promise he didn’t mean to.’
Drew takes Chloe’s hand and leads her from the stairs. ‘Come and say hello, Chloe. I think poor Fergus is probably a bit frightened too. I don’t suppose he’s used to little girls screaming at him.’ He mouths the word ‘sorry’ at the woman, as he leads Chloe forward, bending down to fuss the dog.
‘Hi, Anna,’ he says easily. ‘I’m Drew. This is my wife, Thea, and this is Chloe…’ He turns and beckons. ‘And her little sister, Lauren.’ He drops to his haunches. ‘Oh, you’re beautiful, aren’t you?’ he adds to the dog, as Fergus quivers in ecstasy.
I wave at Lauren and wait for her to come down the stairs, smiling at the woman as I do so. ‘The girls don’t really mind dogs at all, so please don’t worry. It’s lovely to meet you.’
The woman is about my height, and age too, I reckon, with thick sandy-coloured hair tied up in a loose ponytail, half of which has come loose. It trails around her shoulders in wisps. Her face is a little pink, but she’s not wearing any make-up and I get the feeling that she rarely does. She wouldn’t need to, she’s incredibly pretty, with huge almond-shaped grey-green eyes – but there’s not a trace of artifice about her. I know instantly that I’m going to like her.
‘I can’t tell you how much I’ve been looking forward to having proper neighbours,’ I add.
She gives me a quizzical look.
‘I mean, we had neighbours before,’ I explain. ‘Just, it’s different in London; people keep to themselves and I used to say hello to our neighbours on the one side, but the people on the other…’
Anna laughs, smiling down at the dog who is trying to lick Lauren’s face. ‘Oh well, you’d best be prepared for village life then. Everyone knows everyone and, if you’ve got dogs, or children, that process takes all of about ten minutes. Actually I think someone mentioned to me that you had girls…’ She pauses. ‘I can’t think who it was now, but I was rather relieved when I heard. The couple here before you were lovely, but older…’ She grins. ‘Much, much older… and not a fan of Fergus…’
She pulls a face and then looks down at Lauren. ‘I’ve got a little girl about the same age as you. Her name’s Tilly. Would you both like to come and meet her? She’s just at home with her dad – that’s my husba
nd, Rob.’
I exchange a look with Drew, not sure what to say. I don’t even know Anna, not yet, and I’m sure she is lovely but… She interrupts my thoughts.
‘Oh God, sorry! Listen to me. I have a terrible habit of not thinking before I open my mouth. You’d really think I’d know better, especially where children are concerned, given what—’ She stops suddenly. ‘Never mind… Besides, you’ll be far too busy to visit today, won’t you? But, I’d love for you girls to meet Tilly. All I’ve heard since she finished school for the summer is “Mummy, Mummy, when will the new people be here?” She’s desperate for some new playmates.’
She checks her watch. ‘If you have time, maybe you could all pop over later? I expect you’ve brought stuff with you, but I can at least ply you with tea and cake.’ She turns to look back through the front door. ‘Oh, I do hope your removal van hasn’t got lost?’
‘No, don’t worry, it won’t be here for a little while yet. The lads were going to stop off for lunch first so that they could work through once they get here.’
But I’m still not sure. The girls’ eyes lit up at the mention of cake, but it seems a little too soon; I’m not sure if I’m comfortable with things moving this fast. Plus, given that Drew used to live in their house, isn’t that just a little… weird?
‘Actually, we’re at a bit of a loose end now until our worldly goods get here. So we’d love to come if that’s still okay,’ says Drew, giving me that look. The one that says, ‘You know I’m right, when have I ever let you down?’ And so I smile and nod happily, because he will be right. He always is.
‘And as long as you’re sure you have the time?’ I counter, just to be polite.
Anna nods. ‘I’ve just finished putting up the parish notices so that’s my chores done for the day.’
‘Then that settles it,’ says Drew, fishing in his pocket for the house keys. ‘Shall we follow you over?’
I fall into step with Anna as she heads out across the gravel forecourt, while Chloe and Lauren dance about with Fergus somewhere in between us and Drew, who lags behind, locking up.
‘Have you lived here long?’ I ask, as we walk.
‘Not really. Five years,’ replies Anna. ‘So only another forty to go until we’re considered local.’ She grins. ‘Actually, no one’s really like that here, thank God, I can’t be doing with all that. In fact, it’s one of the reasons we moved this way. I’m from Kent originally and by the time Tilly was two I’d got so fed up at how competitive everything was, I thought I was going to go mad. There was a three-year waiting list for the nursery I wanted her to go to, and don’t get me started on primary schooling. I’d have had to put her name down several years before she was even born and well…’ She breaks off, pursing her lips for a moment. ‘Don’t judge me, but Tilly wasn’t planned.’
I look at her in surprise. ‘Why would I judge you? That’s hardly a crime…’
Anna doesn’t answer straight away. ‘Well, anyway, we decided that we’d prefer Tilly was allowed to be a child, rather than a commodity, so we moved up here. She went to the village playgroup when she was three and then to the primary school up the road, which she loves.’ She stops for a few seconds as we pass through her gate. ‘Best decision we ever made coming here. Will your two be going to the local school?’
‘Definitely.’ I smile. ‘We were lucky where we lived in London. Purely by chance, because it had never occurred to us otherwise, we ended up living in the catchment area for a great school, but I know of parents who did all sorts of things to get enrolled there. And the school itself was jammed between buildings, had virtually no outdoor space, and was a fifteen-minute walk away through roads gridlocked with traffic. Believe me, the village school is a thing of my dreams.’
I’ve been so busy talking that I’ve just carried on down Anna’s driveway without thinking and I stop suddenly. I’ve walked up here so many times in the past, but Anna must think me very rude. I’m about to apologise and explain when she turns and looks back at Chloe and Lauren.
‘I’m just wondering what class your two will be in. Tilly’s eight.’
‘Yes, Lauren’s eight too, only just. Chloe’s nine, so classes two and three, the secretary said. A Mrs Hollingsworth and Miss Butler, I think?’
Anna nods. ‘Yes, that’s right. There are only four classes – it varies, but at the moment it’s Reception and Year One, Years Two and Three with Mrs Hollingsworth, Three and Four with Miss Butler, and then Year Six with Mrs Speed.’
I try to commit the information to memory. ‘We didn’t get a chance to look around the school before we bought the house, but I’m sure they’ll love it. I have such happy memories myself, so I hope it hasn’t changed too much.’ I grin at Anna’s astonished expression. ‘I grew up here,’ I explain, loving the way it feels to say this. ‘In fact, so did Drew.’ I point back towards Pevensey. ‘That’s where I lived, and Drew lived next door…’
She nods, a round ‘O’ of surprise on her lips, and I wait for the information to catch up with her. ‘But…’ She turns to look at Drew. ‘Oh…’ And then she bursts out laughing. ‘That’s amazing and very weird! I dread to think what hideous architectural crimes have been perpetrated at Rose Cottage; it’s been pulled about a bit over the years.’
‘Well, it wasn’t pink for starters,’ answers Drew, catching up with us. He appraises the building, a broad smile on his face. ‘But the rest looks as I remember it, from the outside at least.’
Anna whistles for Fergus and leads us to the back door. ‘Then you’d better come on through and get reacquainted,’ she says, laughing. ‘And I’ll go and see where everyone has got to.’
It’s even more bizarre standing in the hallway of Rose Cottage than it was at Pevensey and I’m conscious of how Drew must be feeling too. At first glance not a lot seems to have changed over the years, apart from the decoration of course, but, as he looks around, he studiously avoids my eye. Anna is gone only a matter of seconds, however, before she returns with a tall, athletic-looking man and a mini version of herself trailing at her side.
‘Girls, this is Tilly…’
On cue, Tilly steps forward. ‘Would you like to come and play? We can go outside if you like.’
Lauren looks up at me, a query on her face, and then back down at Fergus who clearly knows when he’s on to a good thing. ‘Can the dog come too?’
‘Of course,’ answers Anna, seeing my nod. ‘Tilly, why don’t you show them the Wendy house. I’ll bring you out some drinks in a bit.’
They don’t need a second invitation and, with a flurry of scampering legs, all four of them barrel through the door. There’s a sudden increase in space in the hallway and an awkward pause for a second before Anna’s husband holds out his hand.
‘Well, that’s them sorted,’ he says, smiling, relief showing on his face. ‘I’m Rob, it’s good to meet you.’
Rob must be at least six-foot-two and, like Drew, is wearing the regulation uniform of men in their mid-thirties: jeans, tee shirt and shirt worn loose over the top. But even the relaxed cut of his clothes can’t hide the tautness of the muscles beneath them, and I can feel the two men sizing each other up, subconsciously or not. Rob has a wide, friendly face, however, with smiley eyes and longer than average dark hair, already threaded through with grey at his temples.
‘It’s good to meet you too,’ says Drew, shaking his hand and waiting while I do the same. ‘And we were hoping to find children on our doorstep, so it couldn’t be better.’
‘Lauren is the same age as Tilly,’ explains Anna. ‘And her sister, that’s Chloe, is a year older.’
Rob nods approvingly. ‘Tilly will be made up to have some new playmates.’
There is an unspoken question in the air but we avoid it for now and instead smile at one another.
‘Well, let’s not stand on ceremony,’ says Anna quickly. ‘Come into the kitchen and I’ll put the kettle on. I promised you cake as well – don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten.’ She flaps h
er hand at Rob. ‘You’ll never believe this, but Drew used to live here, when he was a child. In this very house. And Thea used to live at Pevensey… So you grew up together and now you’re married…’ She gazes around her kitchen. ‘Come on then, how does it feel to be back?’
‘Weird…’
‘Amazing…’
I answer the same time as Drew, my eyebrows meeting at his reply, which is so different from mine. But Anna laughs and, just like that, the conversation begins to flow. There’s something very down to earth about both Anna and Rob and their house is as unpretentious as they are.
‘Of course, I’m being incredibly nosey,’ starts Anna. ‘But I thought I saw Derek Hardcastle’s van outside yours a little while ago. Are you having some work done?’ She brings a big pot of coffee to the table which sits in the centre of their kitchen.
‘We’re hoping to,’ I reply. ‘What’s he like?’
‘Not the cheapest,’ replies Rob, picking up the question. ‘But he does a good job, and he does it quickly and when he says he’s going to, which is why he’s rarely out of work. It’s too small a community to mess people around.’
‘Yes, we hoped that might be the case. He certainly seemed to be on the ball. We’re both going to be working from home and the old conservatory on the side of the house will be just perfect for us once it’s converted. The sooner the work’s done the better.’
Rob is nodding. ‘It can be tricky combining work alongside home life, can’t it? But that sounds ideal.’ He leans forward as if to speak confidentially. ‘I probably shouldn’t even admit to this, but I’m rather envious; Pevensey is such a beautiful house. My own office is tiny, too small really, and I sometimes wonder if we wouldn’t be better off living in the vicarage. But it’s such a soulless house, if you’ll forgive the pun.’
‘The vicarage?’ I look up in surprise, noting that Drew has done the same.
‘Oh…’ Anna looks at her husband, a little confused. ‘Didn’t I say? Rob’s the local curate.’
Rob’s eyes dance with amusement. ‘At least have a piece of cake before you run off,’ he says, grinning. ‘It’s the most brilliant conversation-stopper I know, guaranteed to put the fear of God into people, literally…!’